Three 'Transphobic' Advert Emerges On Same Day Gender Recognition Bill Passes In Ireland

On the same day that a historical gender recognition bill passed in Ireland, a picture of a "transphobic" Three Ireland advert has emerged. The post has since been shared thousands of times across Facebook.

Outrage spread across the social networking site, many claiming that the sign was "offensive". Others slammed the accusers of being, "Too politically correct" and argued that it was, " A clever campaign".

The billboard, displayed in a suburb of Dublin, reads: "Sorry Vodafone customers, it turned out he was a she after you'd used all your data."

The advert under dispute is by mobile phone company Three

Three, a mobile phone company, have since apologised for the controversy caused by the advert. They said in a comment on Facebook: "Sorry if you feel this ad is offensive,

"That was not our intention. It’s part of a wider campaign that gives examples of when you can often miss the best bits of TV/films when you're streaming because you've used all your data. Again we’re sorry for any offence caused and we hope this explains the concept."

The dispute comes as a law that recognises transgender people to gain legal recognition without seeing a doctor or receiving medical treatment passed in the Irish Parliament.

Although similar to the UK's Gender Recognition Act, it has been dubbed to be more progressive. The bill journeyed without controversy through the upper house (Seanad) for the Report and Final Stages before successfully passing.

People have since raised concerns about the advert and discussed its "offence" on Twitter: